NO KINGS! 1776 AND TODAY
Like many of us, I’ve been watching Ken Burns’ The American Revolution. At the end of the second episode, the colonists write the Declaration of Independence. A voiceover states that although most people know the first paragraph, few remember the rest of the document, which details the abuses George III imposed on America.
I used to teach the Declaration and I also emphasized the first paragraph, with its assertion that governments are formed to advance “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” But I recently realized that many of the charges against the British monarch could also be made about Donald Trump. Let me briefly detail some of them.
The first one asserts that “He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good” followed by charges that he has failed to allow important laws that he does not like. Later it states that “He has dissolved Representative Houses,” that “He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone,” and that “He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people….”
The Declaration then builds on the dangers of militarizing civilian life. “He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the consent of our legislatures” and “He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.” As we observe ICE and the National Guard (often from different states) invade and occupy Democratic cities, from Los Angeles, Cal., to Washington, D.C., Chicago, Ill., Portland, Ore., Memphis, Tenn., Charlotte and Raleigh, N.C., we cannot overlook the similarities. Trump’s undeclared war on Venezuela, his murder of at least 80 men whom he considers drug runners regardless of proof, constitutes using military authority without congressional approval. The Declaration continues to charge the king with “imposing taxes on us without our consent”, which defines the many tariffs Trump has unilaterally created.
When Americans wrote the Constitution, they believed that dividing the government into three separate powers would provide the “checks and balances” to keep us free. That worked for almost 250 years. But today, with Republicans in control of all three branches, it has broken down. The government, instead of being democratic, has become authoritarian. As long as the Republican majority continue to back Trump, it remains so.
However, that dire situation seems to be coming to an end. Of all the great issues facing this nation, who would have thought that the Epstein Files would be a major problem for the Republicans? But it has been. Others in the party are now concerned about Trump’s imposing all of Russia’s demands against Ukraine. Formerly devout supporters, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, have abandoned their seats. As Trump’s approval ratings continue to plummet, many more will flee his sinking ship.
Now as in the eighteenth century, most Americans do not want to be ruled by a king. The first No Kings march drew 3,000,000 people, the second, 5,000,000, the third, 7,000,000. MoveOn just announced that there will be a fourth one, but did not release a date. I am sure it will be even larger. May it end this dreadful authoritarian rule soon!